Saturday, September 12, 2015

Pros and Cons, Home Ownership Edition

I know there are those reading this who are renters who dream about home ownership.

Because this gets you ramped up, I guess.

I get it, I really do. There are all kinds of advantages to owning your own home, from tax breaks to privacy to being able to paint your damn walls without asking anyone's permission.

Still, as someone who is about to end 19 years of home ownership, I have to say I'm looking forward to simply renting 963 square feet of someone else's space for a while.

Why?

Well, here's why.

1. The weather. I will no longer give a damn about the weather. Drought or flood, I don't have to program a sprinkler system or deploy soaker hoses or drag manual sprinklers out in order to keep my foundation from cracking. Not my slab, not my problem. Run up your own water bill if you want, mofos.

2. Burglary. My new apartment is on the fourth floor. I'm pretty confident that no would-be burglars will bother to scale those heights just to attempt to rob my meager possessions. If they do, I think they'll be of a type I can confidently dispatch with a well-placed kick to the crotch.

4. Lawn care. I don't give a fuck if the grass is green or not. Water it if you want. Plant cacti if you want. I couldn't care care less what the landscape looks like 300 feet below me.

5. Amenities. At this moment, I don't have a treadmill, or a gas grill, or a swimming pool. I also am not within walking distance of cool shops, restaurants, or light rail. But once I'm my apartment, I totally will be. That all sounds good to me.

I wish I were in my apartment today. The only reason I'm not is that I can't afford to buy certain necessities like a washer/dryer, pots and pans, or living room furniture until my house closes. I'm thinking October 7th, unless a miracle happens before then, like a burning bush starts puking up dollar bills.

Anyway, while I understand the lure of home ownership, I also embrace the yearning to rent. What do you think? Let me know.

9 comments:

I can see both sides of it, especially since we have so many minor repairs we need to do to our house to keep it from becoming a ramshackle hovel. But I wouldn't trade not having neighbors on top of me or having to walk quietly because of neighbors under us for anything.

I can also see both sides of it--but then I have mixed feelings about being ambivalent. If you own a home do you also have to pay property tax? That might bring down the difference between a mortgage and renting, as would, say, the cost of a gym membership if you lived in a house.The one down side sounds like it'll be lugging a washer and dryer up to the fourth floor. I hope the place has an elevator.

The 40% increase in my monthly payment takes into account property tax AND homeowner's insurance. It's a pretty big hit financially, but fortunately I'm going to get a hefty payout from selling the house in a very hot market. (Not as hefty as if I got to keep all of it instead of 50%, but that's totally worth it). The on-site fitness center/pool is a bonus, as I would never pay for access to such things. Not only is there an elevator, but there is a four-story parking garage, so I won't ever have to take the stairs unless I decide to - snort - get the extra exercise.

We lived in California for ten years before moving Back East because we knew we'd never be able to afford a house out there. Rented for 4 more years once we got here, then bought a house in the 'burbs because School District. So I totally agree with all the advantages you listed. But I hate having people living above or below me. And I love to garden. Eventually we will move back into the city, though. And deal with neighbors again. You do what you need to do at different points of life, is what I'm saying.

I rent and I have no interest in buying a house, in part because I could never afford a house that is as conveniently located as this townhouse I rent.

However, the house that my ex bought when I lived with her was also in this part of town, and it has more than doubled in its appraisal since she bought it in 2006. It's an incredible investment for her, whereas I'm spending money on rent that only keeps a roof over my head.

I think I'm okay with that, actually. There's a crack along the ceiling of this place on both first and second floor and the probably foundation problems that indicates mean nothing to me.